Cauli is back in action! After my first successful experience with my new friend Cauli (see here), my friend Cori suggested a Cauli Pizza on my Instagram. Of course, I had to try!! I hit her up for her favorite recipes (here and here), and did my own research from there.

You guys. This is way yum. I am always surprised by the versatility of cauliflower, especially for having NEVER eaten in previously in my life. But I did see it as a chicken substitute the other day…the jury is still out on that one.

I have not always been a tomato fan. In fact…This is one of the few ways I will eat a raw tomato, just purely based on the fact that there are too many other things involved that I like to eat. (Other ways include and are limited to: Pico de Gallo.) Traditional Caprese Salad is made with plain basil leaves, but what’s the fun in that, really? All of the following forms you’ll see today have incorporated pesto. Don’t worry, it doesn’t make them hard to make!

First off, I apologize for falling off the face of the earth for two weeks. A combination of things being busy around here and a couple of recipes not panning out quite in the way I anticipated, led to me falling behind! Hopefully I’ve jumped back on the wagon!

We took a gander to the Porter Peach Festival a couple weeks ago. Porter is a little farm town about 45 minutes outside of Tulsa. Their peaches are famous. In Colorado, it was all about the Palisade Peaches. Here in Oklahoma, I’ve always heard about the infamous Porter Peach. It must be a requirement to grow peaches that your town starts with a P.

Confession 2 of Cucumber Month: I don’t eat these, either. I know, I’m terrible. But I do trust my tried-and-true taste tester hubs that does happen to like pickles, and he thought very highly of them. I also made him a jar of “special” spicy pickles with a quartered jalapeño in it. Let me just tell you: don’t rub your nose after stirring that brine with your fingers, mmkay? Your nose will go numb.

First of all, I want to welcome you all to what I’m going to call CUCUMBER MONTH. If you haven’t heard, my teeny cucumber plant has taken over a third of my garden bed, and has since produced over 25 cucumbers…as of today. Today, I found one that was MASSIVE under a couple of leaves. I’ve been documenting some of my harvests on Instagram, so you can see here and here what this monster has become. No need to #shoplocal when you can #eatlocal out of your own backyard! I’ve got lots of cucumber deliciousness coming your way, so get ready!

First of all, I picked up this gorgeous cauli from the Tulsa Farmer’s Market for $3. It was worth every penny.

Y’all, this stuff is incredible. I stumbled across it on Pinch of Yum, and was extreeeemely skeptical, but trust me.

Before this, I’d never actually eaten cauliflower before. Is that weird? I’m almost 24. I don’t know, blame my mom or something. I think it’s because I’ve always associated cauliflower with broccoli, and broccoli and I have never really gotten along.

This is potato salad with a healthier spin – it’s packed with veggies and has a light and fresh taste!

I will tell you, I haven’t ever really eaten potato salad because I don’t care for mayo or mustard. This one has just enough mustard for the color, and no mayo to speak of. This is a great way to throw together something tasty and hearty. I brought this to a pool party this weekend, and it was a hit! People really liked the asparagus and artichokes inside.

Since becoming a “real” adult, I have actually enjoyed getting to try new veggies and expand my taste horizons. Blogging has been a great help in encouraging new flavors and combinations. I wish I would have known at a younger age that roasted asparagus with lemon is basically like weeknight heaven. Teaching kids healthy choices should be a top priority for caregivers.

Hi, I’m Hillary!

Welcome to 918 Plate, where I use locally-sourced ingredients, whether they're from the farmers market, local Oklahoma businesses, or even my own backyard. Learn to #enJOY fresh cooking with me! Learn more about me…